Refrigerator-car



(No Model.)

' M. S. MILLARD. REFRIGBRATOR GAR. No. 466,794. Patented Jan. 12, 1892.

Mr/@QU 12 m12@ `View on the line a: of Fig. l.

UNITED STATES PATENT OFFICE.

MARTIN S. MILIARD, OF KANSAS CITY, MISSOURI.

REFRlGERATOR-CAR.

SPECIFICATION forming part of Letters Patent No. 466,794, dated January12, 1892.

Application tiled September l0, 1891. Serial No.405,335. (No model.)

To all whom, it may con/cern.-

Be it known that I, MARTIN S. MILLARD, a citizen of the United States,residing in Kansas City, in the county of Jackson and State of Missouri,have invented certain new and useful Improvements in Refrigerator- Cars;and I do hereby declare the following to be a full, clear, and exactdescription of the invention, such as will enable others skilled in theart to which it appertains to make and use the same.

My invention relates to improvements in refrigerator-cars; and theobject is to provide means for maintaining a constant circulation ofcold air throughout a car.

With this and other ends in view my invention consists of a tankarranged in a suitable compartment in a car and adapted to receive arefrigerant, water-pipes arranged within and communicating with theinterior of the tank, pipes for conducting warm air from the upperportion of the car through air-pipes in the tank and back into the carnear 'the loottom thereof, and valves for permitting the passage of airin only one direction through the air-pipes.

My invention further consists in the peculiar construction andarrangement of parts, as will be hereinafter fully pointed out andclaimed.

I have illustrated my invention in the accompanying drawings, in which-Figure 1 is a transverse vertical sectional View through a car providedwith my improvement-s. Fig. 2 is a vertical sectional Fig. 3 is atransverse vertical sectional view through a carat one side of therefrigerant-tank, and Fig. 4 is a horizontal sectional view on the liney y of Fig. l. A

Like letters of reference denote corresponding parts in all the figuresof the drawings, referring to which- A designates a metallic tank of anydesired size, which is placed in a compartment formed at one end of acar by a partition A. The compartment in which the tank is placed shouldbe sufficiently large to leave a passage S all around the tank whenplaced in position. The tank is secured in position within the car inany suitable and desirable manner. The bottom of the tank is providedwith a central depending portion or trough N, in whichare fitted pipesO. The inner ends of the pipes O are connected by a perforated band orsleeve M,and to their outer ends are attached vertical pipes B, whichextend up` wardly and terminate in valve-boxes R, suitably secured inthe upper part of the tank A. The valveboxes R are divided into twoparts by a partition h, in which is fitted a checkv'alve II, and fromthe inner compartment of said boxes extend air-pipes D, which, as shownin Fig. 2, are inclined and pass through the tank A, near the lowerforward corners thereof. To the lower ends of the air-pipes D areattached short pipes E, which extend through the partition A and openinto the car.

Pipes F lead from the outer compartment or chamber of the valve-boxes Rthrough the partition A and open into the car near the top thereof, theinner ends of said pipes being provided with check-valves G. The valvesG and H are normally held slightly open, as shown in Figs. l and 2,bysuitable springs. The outer ends of the pipes F are connected by aperforated pipe U.

Below the tankA is arranged a drip-pan L, from which short conduits orpipes K lead through the bottom of the car, and in the trough N isarranged a waste-pi pe J, provided with a suitable valve and by means ofwhich the tank can be emptied. An overiiow-pipe I is also attached tosaid tank at the desired elevation. Access is had to the tank through adoor P, arranged in the top of the car and so constructed as tohermetically seal the tank when placed in position.

The operation of my invention is as follows: The tank A is partiallyfilled with water, broken ice, and salt. The ice and salt surround thepipes B, D, and C, and the water passes through the perforated band orsleeve IWI and rises in the vertical pipes B to a level with` thewaste-pipe I in the tank. By closing the door P the ice within the tankis hermetically sealed, and as direct contact with the hot air isimpossible the ice will last for a long period of time. When the car isnot in motion, the exposure of such a great surface of cold iron keepsup a secondary circulation through the pipes F, D, and E, the'valves G Hbeing, as

IOO

before stated, normally held slightly open.

The air-passages S also permit of the warm in the oth er.

the valve-box R, and

air in the car circulating around the exterior of the tank A. Then thecar is in motion, the oscillation of the tank causes the water toalternately rise in one of the pipes B and fall As the water rises inone of the pipes B, the air in such pipe is forced up into as it cannotescape through the pipe F, because the valve G closes instantly uponreceiving any pressure from that side, such air. passes through thevalve H and the pipes D and E and is discharged intothe car near thebottom thereof. This discharge of cold air into the bottom of the carforces the warm air up into the top thereof, and from there it passesthrough the perforated pipes Uinto the pipes F and down through thepipes D and E. The perforations in the pipe U prevent clogging of thepipes F and also serve to receive warm air from all portions of the car.

I have described but one tank and one set of circulating-pipes; butinpractice I employ two of such systems, one in each end of the car.

Although I have described my improvements as applied to a car, I amaware that it can easily be adapted to all other places re quiring aforced and purified circulationsuch, for instance, as cold-storagehouses, hospitals, mines, packing-houses, thc. Hence I do not limitmyself to the particular'construction herein described, but reserve theright to make such changes and alterations as fairly fall within thescope of my invention.

To reduce the evaporation of the water in the vertical pipes B andlubricate the interior of such pipes, I introduce a small amount of oilinto such pipes. The oil isintroduced into the pipes B by means of pipesY, which extend from the vert-ical pipes to the .interior of the car.The inner ends of the pipes Y are closed by suitable valves y. I havealso found that by introducing mercury into the pipe C the effectivenessof the apparatus is increased.

I-Iaving thus described myinvention, what I claim as new, and desire tosecure by .Letters Patent, is-

l. In a refrigerator, the combination of a tank adapted to'contain arefrigerant, waterpipes arranged within and communicating with theinterior thereof, air-pipes arranged within and communicating with theair outside of the tank, and valves for permitting passage of air in onedirection through the airpipes, substantially as shown and described.

2. In a refrigerator, the combination of a tank adapted to contain arefrigerant, waterpipes arranged in said tank and communicating with theinterior thereof, valve-boxes receiving the upper ends of thewater-pipes,

air-pipes extending from said valve-boxes through the tank near itslower end, pipes connecting the valve-boxes with the surrounding air,and valves arranged in the valve-boxes, substantially as shown anddescribed, for the purpose specified.

3. In a refrigerator, the combination of a tank, water-pipes arranged inand communieating with the interior of the tank, and airpipes forconducting the air outside the upper portion of the tank through thetank and discharging the same near the bottom of the tank when it isoscillated, substantially as shown and described.

4;. The combination of a tank adapted to receive a refrigerant. Water-pipes arranged in a trough formed in the bottom of'said tank, a perforatedband or sleeve connecting the adjacent ends of said pipes, valve-boxesarranged in the upper portion of the tank and provided with acheck-valve, pipes extending from the valve-boxes to the water-pipes inthe p bottom of the tank, air-pipes extending from the valve-boxesthrough the tank near the bottom thereof, suction-pipes connecting thevalve-boxes with the air outside of the tank, and check-valves arrangedat the inner ends of said pipes, substantially as shown and described.

5. The combination of a tank, water-pipes arranged in said tank andhaving their inner ends connected bya perforated coupling and theirother ends entering valve-boxes in the tank, air-pipes leading from thevalveJooXes through the tank,suctionpipes leading from the valve-boxesto the surrounding air, a perforated pipe connecting the outer ends ofthe suction-pipes, and check-valves arranged in the valve-boxes and atthe inner ends of the suction-pipes, as and for the purpose described.

6. The combination of a tank, water-pipes arranged in said tank andhaving their inner ends connected by a perforated coupling and theirouter ends entering valve-boxes in the tank, air-pipes leading from thevalve-boxes through the tank, suction-pipes leading from the valve-boxesto the surrounding air, a per-v forated pipe connecting the outer endsofthe suctionpipes, valves arrangedin the valveboxes and at the innerends of the suction pipes, and pipes for conveying oil to the in- IOOterior of the water-pipes in the tank, substantially as shown anddescribed.

In testimony whereof I affix my signaturein presence of two witnesses.

MARTIN S. MILLARD. Xhitnesses:

E. T. PAGETTE, JOHN PORTER.

